Mr. Stanton is spot on. There is no real continuity to COIN. I have seen units come into the various AO's all cocky as in their opinion, "They had been there, Done that ”, attitude. It always ended badly for them.
I am assuming that you are talking about either a PRT or a HTT.
It would seem that when conducting Joint Ops, especially with OGA's and OGO's you would get the players together as soon as you identify who is going and start training them along with the unit they support and a clear Chain of Command.
Every deployment is different. I've been to Diyala three times and the locals knew me. Many times we had THT’s CA, TPT’s, MP's etc, all bundled into a patrol, all doing their own thing, often working against each other without even realizing it. Add a couple of State Dept. bubbas in the mix and you always have a lively AAR after the patrol.
I have to give kudos to the Marines though, I've always enjoyed working with my fellow Brothers in Arms. They seemed to get things done, whether in combat or a civil military operation.
Thank God I recently retired. I’ve always remarked that it would be my CoC that would give me PTSD. I realize that it’s the enemy’s job to try to kill me, not my own Commands.
I would recommend creating Joint PRT/HTT specific units where the people work together at all times and if AC, when they transfer, they transfer to another PRT/HTT. You get to know the people within that community that way. Everyone has a clear mission and common goal that way as well..
